HYDERABAD: The Telangana High Court on Wednesday stressed that adoptions must strictly follow procedure and questioned senior officials over alleged illegal adoptions and failures to identify the biological parents of children rescued from unlawful placements.
A bench of Chief Justice Alok Aradhe and Justice GM Mohiuddin examined child-care institutions, rehabilitation mechanisms and adoption procedures while hearing an appeal concerning an alleged illegal adoption.
The court questioned why police had failed to make efforts to trace the biological parents of children, including infants aged two months to three years, allegedly involved in illegal adoptions. It observed that questioning of persons claiming to have adopted the children could help establish their origins. Only after identifying the biological parents, the court said, could authorities determine whether the children had been legitimately given in adoption or sold.
The bench directed the Home department to use scientific methods, including DNA sampling, wherever necessary, and submit a detailed report within a week.
The proceedings arose from a petition by M Venkanna and his wife of Nalgonda district, challenging police seizure of a child they claimed to have adopted in 2023 and its handover to the Women and Child Welfare department.